What started as individuals blogging independently about children’s and young adult books became a collective of like-minded people. While maintaining our own sites and unique perspectives, shared activities made us a thriving community. Now  with weekly celebrations of poetry and nonfiction, an online literary journal, a shared database of book reviews, discussion groups, contests, social networks, an annual conference, and our own book awards  we’ve become a society.

KidLitosphere Central strives to provide an avenue to good books and useful literary resources; to support authors and publishers by connecting them with readers and book reviewers; and to continue the growth of the society of bloggers in children’s and young adult literature.

Welcome to KidLitosphere Central: The Society of Bloggers in Children’s and Young Adult Literature at www.kidlitosphere.org.

But I can’t call it a press release. That phrase implies that the website is ready to be proudly trotted out before an audience. Instead, I feel more like K Central is trotting out as I run behind yelling, “Your pages aren’t done! There are blogs to add! And the links! We have to check the links!”

But it’s all right, because this isn’t a press release. It’s a community release, in that KidLitosphere Central is being released to the community for your feedback, suggestions, and ideas.

While the website remains a work in progress, I ask for patience. I may not be able to get to things quickly, and sometimes I’m going to be climbing the learning curve. (I’m not as technologically savvy as I’d have you believe.)

As you offer your feedback, I ask for understanding. I can’t take every suggestion or make every change. Sometimes I will have to chose between two conflicting ideas. Sometimes there will be limitations to my skills, the web template’s flexibility, or the available time.

Most of all, I ask for collaboration. By offering ideas and initiatives, by informing me of events and opportunities, together we’ll make KidLitosphere Central a resource that is invaluable, polished, and dynamic.

Pssst!I caught up with KLC last week as it was running amok, and said, "whooa." It is really very cool looking -- what a great thing you'll have in place by the time of the next Kidlit Conference! So organized!!

The Rundown

One of the bestselling preschool books of recent times was Walter the Farting Dog. At the same time, the American Library Association named as one of its best books Michael Rosen’s Sad Book, a book in which Mr. Rosen talks about his despair over the death of his son. I believe that, for most of us, what we want lies somewhere between a flatulent canine and overwhelming grief.